Latest / Zone2Speak Podcast / Unbound XL Champion Svenja Betz on Racing, Resilience & Community

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Unbound XL Champion Svenja Betz on Racing, Resilience & Community · Zone2Speak Podcast

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Now, let's get into the episode.
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Welcome back to ZONETOSPEAK. Today, I am thrilled to welcome a powerhouse in
2:52
the world of gravel racing, Svenja Betts.
2:55
From the road to the rough and unpredictable terrain of gravel,
2:59
Svenja has carved her own path, taking on some of the toughest races and proving
3:05
herself as one of the strongest riders in the scene.
3:09
She's the 2024 Unbound Excel winner and has many other great results,
3:14
all while studying for her biology and sports master's degree.
3:19
In this episode, I will dive into her journey from road to gravel racing,
3:24
her mind set as an athlete, and the philosophies that guide her.
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We will also talk about what's next for her and what excites her most about
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the evolving gravel scene.
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Let's get into it. Svenja, welcome to Zone to Speak. Hello, thanks for inviting me.
3:41
Absolutely, pleasure. Thanks for being here. And thanks for a very nice intro. I get goosebumps.
3:47
Aw, it's all you. It's all you. I didn't do anything. I just rode it. Thanks.
3:54
So you started your career in road racing. What inspired you to transition to gravel?
4:00
Actually, it happened by accident. I just registered for a gravel race in 2022
4:06
just because I needed something else.
4:08
And I had a cross bike in the garage.
4:11
So I registered for the UCI race in Poland.
4:15
And okay I went there together with
4:18
my mom and I did the race like it
4:21
was one of the best experiences I did so far
4:25
and I met super super cool people for
4:28
example Nathan Haas he inspired me
4:31
quite a lot he was one of the first bros who
4:35
was actually like talking to me because in the road
4:38
scene I always had the feeling that people are a
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bit like oh like we're super cool like we're not
4:44
really talking to like the small ones like it's
4:47
not general for everyone but sometimes I had the feeling and in the gravel world
4:51
it was the complete different so I felt so welcome and yeah then I just continued
4:58
doing more races and yeah found my way in the in the gravel scene,
5:04
yeah I think a lot of us have that feeling I come from triathlon and I never felt.
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It was, I mean, I don't want to say unwelcoming, but when I went into gravel,
5:17
I was just like, oh my gosh, people are so nice here. What's happening in triathlon?
5:21
But yeah, the gravel scene, everybody, it's so nice.
5:25
It doesn't matter what you look like, what bike you have, what is your result.
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Everybody welcomes you and it's happy that you're showing up and you're at the
5:36
start line. Yeah, exactly.
5:37
And also like in the race, of course, you're like racing against each other.
5:42
But after a race, you say hello and you share a room the next race because you
5:47
just met and you get friends.
5:49
And yeah, it's just a very nice scene. And it's cool to be inside it and also
5:55
to be like there from the beginning on.
5:58
Absolutely yeah but you had good results on road cycling
6:01
as well but as you went to poland and did this
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uci race you fell in love and then you just
6:08
went full-on gravel or are you still going
6:11
back and forth a little bit um so in 2022 i did
6:15
both so i combined road with gravel but i
6:17
realized that gravel is my world and i do enjoy
6:21
it much more than the road cycling also because
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on the road i often crashed in a
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peloton and i kind of started with a
6:30
fear in my body already on the starting line
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just yeah because of the the crashes i
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had and the gravel racing was just a bit
6:38
like more relaxed and also more nature related so
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i had the opportunity to join a team where
6:45
i can focus on gravel so i did
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this and then together with finia in 2023 i
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did to like pure gravel season and i
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did two road races but i realized that's not
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my world anymore i do enjoy the gravel racing much more
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yeah yeah i mean i'm a big gravel rider wouldn't say racer and yeah i couldn't
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agree more with you but i'm biased and you had made some comments before i know
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you have done uci races but you had commented before that you prefer the gravel earth series.
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So why is that so yeah I started with the UNCI races and I also had very good
7:28
results in the first year and then I did the world championships in Italy when
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it was the first time and oh my gosh it was such a crazy feeling to be there
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at the start line like I was first row and,
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I get goosebumps by just thinking about it it was such an amazing event but,
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You did the start and there was such a different feeling than in the races I
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did before because there were so many road cycling people and the atmosphere was so different.
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So you realized, okay, this is not really gravel.
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And then also UCI races are a bit short sometimes.
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So I prefer the longer races.
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And also there's so many road cycling involved
8:18
that it's not the original gravel
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scene what it is in my mind
8:25
to to be a gravel racer so it's not just you're on off-road and you're on a
8:30
gravel bike it's also a bit like you're like you're going for a little adventure
8:35
you're sharing your experiences with your like with the people around you and it's a bit less this like.
8:43
Focusing on just power and just
8:46
being a professional so in
8:49
the gravel series i always had the feeling there's like
8:52
everyone is welcome like it doesn't matter if
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you're a professional or if you're just riding your
8:58
bike because you love it and you have like a full-time job next
9:01
to it and then also the adventures and
9:04
the experiences i took i took out of a just
9:07
a gravel series race they were so
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much like more and more intense so
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the uci races i like a lot
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because like you can go to different countries and you can race like go there
9:22
race go back but it's not like experience for everything so in my mind the pure
9:28
travelers are more into these like Trakar and the Rift and Iceland and these kind of places.
9:37
Yeah, I agree. The alternative gravel scene is,
9:41
is to me as well the original gravel
9:45
spirit of community i think uci has its
9:49
value but it is a different vibe
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i agree with you so you you done the
9:55
rift i've done the rift as well yeah yeah
9:59
i did it so beautiful yeah it is like i can
10:01
just like recommend it to everyone yeah like
10:06
this is in my mind this is a pure gravel
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race like of course you go for like a good result and you
10:11
go full gas and you go like you just
10:15
put out everything you have but in
10:18
the end you have such a big experience even if you're
10:20
just like just finning fishing the race
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in like it doesn't matter in what time it's just
10:27
amazing yeah i love it the year i went there was a lot of rain before the race
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so there were so many rivers the rivers were so full of water so there were
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so many river crossing like all type of gravel and i mean and just the scenery
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is just so breathtaking it's like you're.
10:46
Riding in another planet yeah
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exactly and it is such a such a cool vibe
10:52
yeah and so we we
10:55
were sent about just passed not long ago
10:58
and you were not able to make it did
11:01
something come up or was this a conscious choice not
11:05
to be here yeah it was an unfortunate case because
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i started my teacher job this year in
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january like now i can't focus
11:14
100 on cycling so i have a job and
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it's quite full-time so like
11:20
now my focus is on like becoming a teacher in sports and biology in high school
11:26
so I had a like an important event at my school so I had to cancel Santa Val
11:31
unfortunately yeah I tried everything to be there because also my Castelli teammates
11:38
were there and they launched our project.
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But yeah, sometimes this is life and yeah, there's more than cycling.
11:47
So I need to focus on different things this time.
11:50
But I'm really looking forward to like to the next events where I hopefully can be part of.
11:57
Yeah, it's a tough act, you know, balancing everything. I don't know how you
12:01
do it and competing such a high level.
12:05
How is it like a usual day for you? How is your training schedule?
12:10
Yeah like now there's a really big
12:12
change in my life because like until last
12:16
year I had quite a lot of free time and I could do my
12:19
studies around my training more or less but now
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it's totally a different way so now I have to put my
12:25
training around my schedule and I'm more
12:28
or less the whole day in school or in my like school to
12:31
become a teacher so either I'm teaching or I get
12:35
teached but yeah it's a bit
12:37
less training now of course and also like I
12:40
do a lot of hard interval sessions because it's just quick
12:43
but I try to to use
12:47
the weekends for longer rides but still it's it's it's a big change and I try
12:54
to still be competitive I'm sure it's gonna be a bit less than last year and
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of course there's less races because I can't go away every weekend I just need
13:04
the time to prepare my subject.
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So yeah, I'm also a bit curious about the upcoming season.
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And I try to balance both of it, even if I need to focus a bit more on the teacher side.
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But I just love the gravel and the cycling so much and it's my passion.
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So I also use it as a side effect to just calm down and to get a free head.
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So it's now when I go out for a bike ride and I can be on the air and just get
13:37
some sun in my face, it's so enjoyable.
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And I appreciate every single minute on my bike even more than I did before.
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And this is actually a super nice feeling.
13:49
Yeah, yeah. And I think a lot of us do it also for mental health.
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It's just such a good feeling to get out there and do something for us and get
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the fresh air and be more connected with nature, do some exercise,
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get all those hormones, good, happy hormones going.
14:03
I hope you find the balance. I'm sure you will. It's just a matter of time.
14:07
And I also have a full-time job and I do the podcast for fun.
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And I have to fit in the training as well, like most of us.
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And so on the weekends when i can spend a block of hours on my bike is definitely,
14:20
a little bit more gratitude like you said yeah
14:23
exactly i think in the end it's a like you need a routine and then you need
14:27
a like you need a good time efficient plan and yeah yeah i think the part that
14:33
you start enjoying the bike ride even more is a very nice side effect so yeah it's Of course,
14:41
if you compare yourself with pro athletes who are doing just cycling and then
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they go home and lie down on the couch and just do their recovery,
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it's a bit like, okay, how shall I compete against them?
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But on the other hand side, it's like, yeah, life is just so much more than just cycling.
14:58
So I'm actually quite happy to get that I did this decision and to combine both now.
15:05
Yeah, I think so too. And, you know, you can see how it goes.
15:08
Can always you know make adjustments yeah
15:11
exactly so now this is one and a half years for sure
15:14
and then there's still time if i
15:16
really feel to go back to going as like
15:20
cycling as a professional i can still do that and otherwise maybe i'm just saying
15:25
like okay i love my job as a teacher so just combine it and are all the sponsors
15:31
okay with that decision yeah like i talked i hope so I talked to them before
15:36
I did the contract with them.
15:38
And they all said, we're happy to support you.
15:41
And we just like your story and your spirit.
15:45
So I'm super happy to have them next to me. Wonderful.
15:50
That's great to hear. You still have support. Yeah. I'm actually super proud
15:54
of my sponsors this year.
15:55
And it's also my first year as a privateer. So there's a lot of work to organize everything.
16:02
But i i really do like it and i'm now independent so yeah it's in a in a way also a bit easier.
16:11
And you have an academic background, as we mentioned here and there, in sports biology.
16:17
Does the knowledge play a role in your approach to training and recovery?
16:22
Yeah i would say it does like
16:25
not a hundred percent or it's not that
16:28
i are like ask everything and like what
16:31
why do i do this and why do i do this or something but
16:34
especially for example nutrition wise like
16:38
i have some knowledge which i of course can use
16:41
so yeah it's it's a pretty nice
16:44
job and also now for the teaching like
16:48
the sports and my kids in school they're
16:51
like oh you were cycling or like you
16:54
did you did play football and i'm like yeah when i was younger i did play football
16:58
and they're like oh wow so this is super cool and then just show them how good
17:03
sport is this is a nice way yeah yeah that must be a very nice influence yeah
17:10
exactly them i think Yeah,
17:12
I think sports is a great, great tool for kids and teenagers.
17:17
You know, you're teaching high school, so it really, I think,
17:20
gives them more leveled head and confidence in life. Yeah.
17:27
And how do you choose which races you're going to compete in?
17:31
Do you prioritize the specific types of courses, competition levels?
17:36
I mean, we talked about race vibes. so that I
17:39
understood a little bit more now but yeah
17:42
so also this changed a lot because this
17:46
year I'm dependent from the school holidays oh that's right so I looked up when
17:53
I have holidays and then when if there's a race and if is there enough time
18:01
to get there and to get back in time,
18:04
so this was actually quite limited
18:07
this year there's many races I would have
18:10
liked to do but they're just outside of holidays so they
18:14
just don't work but there are also a few which are in the holidays so then I
18:21
can focus on them and I also have the big summer holidays in the summer so I
18:26
guess there are some opportunities to do some races and also to,
18:33
Normally, I chose where can I have a big adventure and create experiences.
18:40
I also like to do races.
18:43
If I did it once, I often like to do it a second time, but probably not a third time.
18:50
I always need something new to get to new places.
18:56
It's also dependent on the date, when it is, and if it fits.
19:00
But yeah in the in the former years i was like i went to like nearly every weekend
19:07
we went to a race because they were just like oh let's go there oh no there's
19:10
a nice race let's go there,
19:12
so when i was free and doing it that was
19:15
such a like cool way to experience different races but
19:19
now i need to be a bit more specific and also a bit
19:22
more planned yeah well
19:25
it's great you took full advantage before and now
19:28
i think at least as a teacher you get most of the
19:30
summer off and there's a lot happening during the summer so hopefully that works
19:35
out well yeah exactly so there's quite a lot of holidays i have i hope i can
19:41
like use them and go like to some races and just relax a bit and not to be too
19:48
focused on school things,
19:50
Yeah, you learn to balance like all of us.
19:55
You have to unplug and disconnect from work as well to find balance.
20:03
Yes, I think this is very important.
20:06
I think the sports and also the gravel races, they also help me.
20:12
You can look forward to your work again when you had a great racing weekend.
20:17
Yeah i was once on
20:20
vacation and the first day my
20:23
work phone fell and broke in so many
20:26
pieces it was unusable and i completely freaked out
20:30
but then it was the best thing that ever happened to
20:32
me because i totally disconnected
20:36
and i was like wow this was actually healthy i need to
20:38
do this more often so that was a very good experience
20:42
for me completely disconnected from everything that's the
20:45
best that's true so
20:49
let's talk unbound i never raced or
20:52
experienced anything in the u.s even though i lived there when
20:55
i lived there i didn't i wasn't racing bikes you
20:59
won the unbound excel which was
21:02
massive massive tell me
21:05
a little bit how it is to race in the u.s is unbound
21:09
all the hype that it's made up to be
21:11
and can you take me inside the race of
21:14
your own experience sorry it's a very heavy loaded
21:17
question yeah so first i think
21:21
it's really cool to be at unbound at least once in your lifetime if you're a
21:25
gravel writer to experience it yourself how the vibe is i was there first time
21:32
last year like 2023 and i did the 200 miles and i was there like a week before and.
21:40
Oh my gosh, but it was such a great week just to feel the vibes,
21:44
to have this unbound experience.
21:46
The race itself wasn't that great.
21:49
To just be there, to explore the gravel scene there and the races and stuff,
21:55
that was really amazing.
21:56
So if you have the chance, just go to Unbound.
21:59
And this year, like 2024, when I did Unbound XL, I was there the second time.
22:06
And it wasn't that excited anymore because it was like, you know,
22:11
the expo, you know where it is, everything.
22:14
You actually meet some people again.
22:16
So that wasn't that special anymore. but of
22:19
course it was special to be there to race another race and
22:22
i signed up for the xl because yeah i
22:26
thought it's maybe a good idea and i'm pretty
22:29
good in these like longer races but it was also my first
22:32
long race so like i did the 300 before but
22:35
not a 570 and yeah so that was really excited and the few days before the start
22:44
were quite hectic and i didn't feel very well like I was very nervous and also
22:49
the atmosphere around me wasn't that great.
22:54
And then I had a good friend there and he just said, Svenja,
22:58
go, you can win this, just go.
23:01
And then I met him at the start and we were just talking and we said good luck to each other.
23:08
And then the first 60K, we were in one big group together with the man as well.
23:12
And he was actually guiding me through.
23:16
He helped me like he said there's a mud or something and
23:20
in the end he was the winner in the men category so sebastian boyer and when
23:26
i realized i gonna win the women's category because like there was like a three-hour
23:32
gap to the next woman i was like oh my gosh this is such a cool,
23:37
experience to have your friend winning the other category and yeah but it was a like,
23:45
that's amazing you guys took off together supported
23:48
each other encouraged each other and then finish both
23:52
yeah share the podium exactly and in between
23:55
i like i was actually leading the whole time but in between i was just so like
24:02
i was that i was suffering in the last 10 hours like literally the last 10 hours
24:08
which is a really big pain like it was just awful and.
24:14
But I knew, okay, you're going to win if you continue.
24:18
And then like 100K or 200K before the finish line, I realized Sebastian won.
24:23
And then I was like, okay, I need to go to the finish line now because I want to meet him.
24:27
It gave you that push to keep going. Yeah, of course, it was still a long way to go.
24:34
But yeah, then in the end, I finished and I won.
24:38
And I had a big celebration because just like
24:41
20 minutes after arriving in the Finnish
24:44
first man from the 200 miles came so everybody
24:47
was excited already so I
24:50
had my big party and it was just really
24:53
cool but then afterwards I was completely dead like
24:56
I was lying in the in the grass and people
25:00
were asking me are you okay and I was like please I just can't talk I need a
25:05
bed I need a toothbrush yeah but yeah it was massive and it was a big moment
25:13
and I think it was also the biggest achievement in my sporting career so far.
25:19
Yeah absolutely absolutely it was a beautiful beautiful moment to watch and
25:24
on those last 10 hours that you said were grueling what what was going through
25:32
your mind and what was you feeling in your body you said you're you're having
25:34
pain was it your legs was it.
25:38
You're you know sitting in the saddle yeah was
25:41
that everything yeah it was like i had
25:44
big subtle issues like it was very uncomfortable
25:47
and then my legs wasn't that
25:50
like they weren't painful it's just the whole body it's
25:53
just so that like you didn't sleep you like
25:58
a very bad thing was these long straight
26:02
roads and when it started to
26:05
become light again i was like oh come on where's the
26:08
sun i need some sun and then it was just cloudy so it.
26:11
Didn't give me any energy and then that's tough
26:15
yeah and then also the like i
26:18
think i didn't eat enough so my body itself was
26:22
just super tired and i wasn't like fueled
26:25
enough so it was just
26:28
very uncomfortable and i think the biggest problem was like
26:31
sitting on a saddle in this case yeah
26:34
but yeah i also knew you're like
26:37
if you continue you you're gonna you're
26:40
gonna win actually like there can't happen that much only like
26:43
if there's a big mechanical or something but i
26:46
knew if i just continue that that's my win and
26:49
that was like my motivation to continue and after
26:54
this experience did you change your saddle do
26:57
you have any new techniques to for
27:01
that not to happen yeah actually afterwards like
27:05
when I did bedlands which was like even
27:08
more even longer I hadn't had these problems because
27:12
I just took more care of that it's always clean and okay in this case I also
27:17
changed the bips and that helped a lot just to have some some wet wipes with
27:23
you and then if you go for a pee just clean everything that's very important
27:27
and then that was much more better.
27:32
That's very good advice because I think sometimes we're in a hurry or tired
27:37
or want to save time and don't do things properly.
27:40
And sometimes if you, quote unquote, waste a minute to do it properly,
27:46
you actually gain time. Exactly, and that was something I learned out from Unbound,
27:51
and I could do it better in Badlands.
27:53
Because sometimes, like you're saying, you go for one minute faster,
27:58
but then in the end, it's so much worse because you just try to save one minute somewhere. Yeah.
28:06
And is there any favorite race so far that holds a special place in your heart?
28:11
Yeah, of course. there are there are actually some but
28:15
there's like one very big
28:18
one in my heart which is very emotional and
28:21
it was trucker in 2023 it was
28:25
trucker 100 and i became like
28:28
i was second but my parents were
28:31
there and they came to girona to cheer for
28:34
me and oh i like and
28:37
i get goosebumps bumps by telling the story but
28:40
it's such like such an emotional race
28:43
and then when I realized I'm gonna like finishing
28:47
on the podium I started crying and
28:50
like it was maybe 30 k's before the finish
28:53
line and I knew okay if you now go and
28:55
there's nothing like big happening anymore then you're
28:59
gonna finish and your parents are waiting there and
29:02
my like best friend Finja was in the finish line yeah and then I started to
29:08
cry already when I reached this area and then everybody was there and was celebrating
29:12
me like it was like just such a cool event and then also it was my very first.
29:21
Big race from the class mark series and like
29:25
i said already this event and the people around
29:28
there are just so nice and then they interview you and yeah
29:31
so the truck was a very big big moment
29:34
in my life but also like unbound of
29:37
course because it's just a big big win and then
29:41
yeah i think badlands this year was also very yeah
29:44
such a big event in my my life yeah
29:48
i bet yeah it's it's it makes very special
29:52
and it's core memory when we have you know someone special
29:55
there on the finish line waiting for us yeah
29:58
yeah that makes it super special like my mom's often
30:02
joining me and she's like often driving
30:05
the car to get to races or often also with
30:07
the airplane she's joining me nice i
30:11
really like it if she's with me and then we're like a
30:14
team and she exactly knows what she has to do without
30:17
big like telling her and it's
30:20
always nice to have her and like if i race and i know she's
30:23
on the finish line it's always a like very.
30:27
Great feeling and in this case it was my my dad as
30:30
well so that was even more special so yeah that's a
30:33
big influencing part if there's
30:36
people who are like in like
30:39
emotional connection to me then
30:43
it's always a bit cooler or a
30:45
bit nicer than if there's no one 100 yeah
30:51
and are there any races on your bucket
30:54
list that you haven't raced before
30:57
yeah there are also quite a lot
31:00
of races on my bucket list there are
31:02
a few ultra races i really want to do for example.
31:06
Atlas mountain race i'm not 100% sure
31:09
if i want to race it as a race or if
31:12
i just want to go there and do it as a like as a
31:15
tour and just enjoy it because when i think back to badlands it was it was horrible
31:22
and i don't know if i want to have this again on the other hand side i would
31:27
like to do it as like very fast so So it's a bit like there are two hearts, like,
31:33
yeah, it's like the racing heart and the enjoying heart.
31:37
So it's difficult, but there's many races. So for example, in Norway,
31:41
there's like a big ultra race.
31:43
And also like, yeah, there's some, yeah, I would say there are more ultra crow
31:49
races on my bucket list. And I would say like smaller races.
31:53
Well, the one in Norway, Bright Midnight. Yeah, I've been talking to Justina's, maybe I'll go for 2026.
32:02
I can't this year. So yeah, it's also, I think for me, of course,
32:08
it's beautiful and it's Justina's, but a bigger attraction is the daylight attraction.
32:15
20 almost 24 7 um i
32:19
think that you can see much more
32:22
and also gives i for me will give a sense of
32:25
safety i mean of course nowhere is a safe country but
32:28
just as a woman alone i think i talked over talked about this on the podcast
32:32
but i'm i'm always a little afraid so yeah yeah that's on my list as well 100
32:38
i agree like it's many uh cool adventures with the light and also the scenery in Norway.
32:47
So I was actually thinking about doing it this year, but it's not on the holidays.
32:52
So I have to postpone it to another year.
32:55
But yeah, I think this is like a cool event to do or race.
33:01
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I agree.
33:05
Any projects or upcoming races that you're extra hyped for or you haven't planned
33:11
anything because you're still juggling the new schedule? I have a brand for this year.
33:16
Of course, it's a bit uncertain how fit I will be there and how it will work out in the end.
33:24
But there's, of course, Drakkar this year.
33:27
And I hope there's the Drakkar Adventure this year with the 560.
33:30
So I really want to go there.
33:33
Yeah, I think this is a distance which suits me quite well.
33:41
Then there's also the hills coming up which is like another very big event and
33:46
I think everybody's there so I think this is just... Which one is this one? The hills?
33:51
The hills in Italy from the marquee that's
33:56
right and I think everybody who rides a gravel bike is there and is there for
34:03
this event I think the marquee did a very good job and I think it's a big event
34:09
So I'll be there and hopefully I just meet the people, say hello,
34:13
and have a nice race.
34:16
And then also in the summer, there's the migration race in Kenya.
34:21
Yeah, I've done that. Oh, you did?
34:24
Yeah. I really want to do it because I think it's such a big adventure.
34:28
Like it's just, it's not only racing. It's magical. Yeah, it's magical.
34:32
So that's on my bucket list for this year. And it's in the holidays, so it could work.
34:39
Yeah, it's one of my favorite races ever.
34:45
It's inside National Geographic magazine. It's...
34:50
I mean, you're riding your bike along zebras, giraffes, and elephants,
34:56
and the Maasai are amazing.
35:00
I can't speak highly enough about this race.
35:03
The organization, I mean, being that you're in the middle of nowhere without
35:08
resources, this organization, I mean, chapeau, hats off, like,
35:15
it's really, really well organized.
35:18
Um so much food and the
35:22
format of being a stage race you're together with
35:26
the same group of people of writers for four
35:29
days it's really fun that's super cool
35:32
that sounds very good i'm excited yeah
35:35
that's what i what i heard and this is
35:38
this is a bit like the race in iceland it's not not just a race it's like an
35:43
adventure it's like a big experience something you will never forget and yeah
35:49
you won't yeah you won't but dimaki is also doing amazing things i mean they they
35:56
are doing the enough festival they have also the memory race i think yeah there's
36:01
a lot of cool stuff there yeah and then i don't know if i can do it this year
36:08
but there's actually the plan to do bedlines in uptime.
36:11
I have some fire chat questions for you. Okay.
36:16
All right. So, biggest race day ritual?
36:24
Um...
36:27
I think I need to get up early, early, early, and to have a proper porridge or breakfast.
36:36
And then I'm always very structured. I need my time. I hate stress.
36:46
I'm always known for the one who is riding a whole race before the race because
36:50
doing a proper warm-up. So yeah, I would say this is something I'm known for
36:58
a long warm-up and no stress.
37:01
Yeah, I agree. I'm with you there. I hate rushing.
37:06
It does stress me out. So yeah, a few extra minutes or an hour before the usual
37:13
time just to make sure everything goes smoothly. Yeah, exactly.
37:17
Yeah yeah have you ever
37:20
had any mechanical and if so can you share the worst mechanical disaster you
37:25
have ever had yes so actually like until now i was super lucky in races to yeah
37:33
to don't have that many mechanicals but i had one very bad one this year like in 2024.
37:40
During the rift like it was such
37:43
a good race i had super good legs i was like
37:46
in a good group and then
37:49
after i think 80k or something my hub in my bag
37:52
wheel just got destroyed and it just didn't work
37:55
anymore so i stopped on the
37:57
middle on the volcano like nowhere's land and
38:01
i walked for like one and a half hours to the next station where
38:04
actually like some people were waiting just too like for safety reasons and
38:09
then i just dropped out of the race but yeah this was one of the only and worst
38:15
mechanicals i had so far in the race oh bummer bummer that was really unfortunate.
38:22
Yeah. At migration, there were so many horror stories of so many flats,
38:27
people getting so many flats.
38:28
And so I was terrified and I kept on thinking, please don't,
38:32
I don't want to have a mechanical. I don't want to have a mechanical.
38:35
But it was so hard that at a point I was like, I hope I have a mechanical.
38:41
I just hope I have a mechanical so I don't have to do this anymore. I know this feeling.
38:48
I had it a few times already when I was like suffering still hard in your lecture,
38:52
out of order, and you're like, please give me a puncture, I want to stop.
39:00
But yeah. No mechanicals, so I kept going, so all good. But it's also part of gravel racing.
39:07
I think this is very unfortunate and in the end you're super sad about it.
39:13
But yeah it's sometimes just a bit it's
39:16
a bit of luck and also a bit of like if you can fix it
39:19
or not yeah that's yeah it's
39:22
true it's part of the game part of the game exactly yeah any
39:27
dream race destination there are also quite a lot i would always go to norway
39:32
like norway is my absolute favorite but a big if i'm gonna go for a big travel
39:37
then i would go to canada oh nice yeah interesting,
39:44
one piece of gear you can't live without yeah,
39:51
gear or something you know it doesn't have to be gear but something that you
39:56
can't live without while riding your bike or on a race it's not,
40:02
only connected to riding a
40:04
bike but I think I couldn't live without coffee it is connected I think so.
40:12
Well which maybe I will know the answer to the next one which is coffee ride
40:17
or interval session I go for an interval session and afterwards I go for a coffee.
40:24
Sounds like a good compromise. For a coffee ride, at the moment,
40:29
I don't really have time for a coffee ride.
40:32
A coffee ride in a rush is not a coffee ride, so you need some time.
40:35
But if you can go for a coffee ride with friends, it's a very,
40:39
very nice thing. I like it. Yeah.
40:43
Post-race, beer, burger, or straight to bed?
40:50
I would say after race i'm
40:53
often very emotional so there's definitely not
40:56
go to bed i'm often also very like
40:59
hyped and yeah everything is excited but since
41:03
i do like take care of my nutrition
41:06
there's also probably no beer and no burger yeah but i think it's it's fine
41:12
if you just have some party after a race and just do what you feel for and just
41:18
yeah don't uh stop about like just do what you what you want so if you want
41:23
to have a beer you can just go for a beer.
41:27
And what's the most ridiculous thing you have ever packed for a race?
41:33
I would say I packed my toothbrush when I went for Ironcrabble, which was a 300k.
41:39
And I thought maybe I need a toothbrush
41:41
because after like some hours of riding, I want to clear my teeth.
41:45
But in the end, I didn't need it. I was like, for 16 hours, you don't need a
41:50
toothbrush. Yeah, but I had it with me.
41:53
But I saved the story. That's not ridiculous, but yeah.
41:58
Oh, it's been so nice to get to know you and have this chat with you.
42:02
Thank you. Yeah, I really enjoyed it. Thank you so much. Yeah.
42:08
Well, I wish you an amazing 2025 season as a privateer.
42:14
I'm really looking forward to see what you bring this year. And hopefully we
42:20
can chat at the end of the season.
42:22
Yeah. Thank you so much for your wishes and also your nice words.
42:25
And I hope we can meet at some point and then just have a chat.
42:31
I would love that. Well, I'm in Girona, so hopefully you'll come to Toronto
42:36
or to just write some time here.
42:39
You have to let me know. Yes, I will do that. That would be really nice.
42:44
Well, thank you so much. Thank you.
42:49
And that's all for today's episode. I want to thank the listeners for tuning
42:54
in. Your support means everything.
42:56
If you enjoyed this episode, please consider following, leaving a review,
43:00
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43:03
Music.